On March 1^st, 2007, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) revealed its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the REAL ID ACT of 2005. NPRM tells states what they must do to comply with REAL ID federal standards for state driver's license/ID cards. DHS provided 20 questions and answers to explain the 162 page NPRM. However, the questions and answers reveal deceit more than answers and clearly exposes REAL ID as INTERNATIONAL ID.  

REAL ID is the fulfillment of long-standing plans to require states to adopt biometric ID. Long before 9/11, these plans date back to the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986, (required biometric CDL enrollment) and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 that placed state ID under the influence of the AMMVA (American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators). The AAMVA is an international association of motor vehicle and law enforcement administrators that strongly advocates biometrics. Now that REAL ID is law, DHS officials have been boasting of biometrifying the world population and creating a permanent biometric link to one's identity to be used by nations and corporations. 

Since 1996, the federal government has tried to hide the international influence that is pushing current driver's license design including the use of biometrics. This influence has come from two major international organizations, the AAMVA and the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization- affiliated with the United Nations). The AAMVA has international influence over driver's license design through State and international DMV, DPS agencies. The ICAO is in charge of creating an international biometric passport design for most nations that includes a chip for storing personal-biometric data.

The NPRM finally names these organizations and defines their roles in the new ID standards. It is now much easier to see where DHS is REALLY going with REAL ID. One may also review the official reports on 9/11 that read like a roadmap to implement global biometrics. The new driver's license/ID card (DL/ID card) design adopts many features of the AAMVA's Personal Identification €“ AAMVA International Specification €“ DL/ID Card Design of 2005 (the NPRM drops the word international from its AAMVA specification description).  

The ICAO sets the photo image capture specifications for REAL ID. These specifications are biometric compatible. In other words, REAL ID photo images can be read by facial image recognition software turning the images into a biometric ID image. These standards are also being adopted by many other nations for their biometric DL/ID cards and biometric passports. Biometrics is the foundational element for REAL ID, TWIC, WHTI, e-passport (globally), SPP and other federal initiatives. 

Knowing these facts about international biometric ID, and then reading the DHS-NPRM questions and answers, it is easy to conclude that DHS is using deceit, not facts, to sway public opinion about REAL ID.  Below are a few of the DHS Questions and Answers and the REAL ANSWERS in response. 

Where did this effort originate?

The 9/11 Commission recommended that the U.S. improve its system for issuing secure identification documents. In the Commission's words, At many entry points to vulnerable facilities, including gates for boarding aircraft, sources of identification are the last opportunity to ensure that people are who they say they are and to check whether they are terrorists.  The Commission specifically urged the federal government to set standards for the issuance of€¦sources of identification, such as driver's licenses.  Congress responded to this key recommendation by passing the Real ID Act  

REAL ANSWER: Federal agencies have been pushing for a national biometric ID, since the mid 80's, long before 9/11. This is evident in laws and bills like the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. The 1986 law required biometrics for commercial license holders and the IIRIRA 1996 placed an international organization, the AAMVA, in charge of State ID standards. This issue is NOT about 9/11. It is about control. 9/11, and our nation's security, is being used as the most recent justification for biometrics. 

DHS QUESTION AND ANSWER

What is a REAL ID license needed for?

The REAL ID Act requires that a REAL ID driver's license be used for official purposes, as defined by DHS. In the rule, DHS is proposing to limit the official purposes of a REAL ID license to those listed by Congress in the law: accessing a Federal facility; boarding Federally-regulated commercial aircraft; and entering nuclear power plants. DHS may consider expanding these official purposes through future rulemakings to maximize the security benefits of REAL ID.  

REAL ANSWER: REAL ID is to be used for official purposes as defined by DHS, not Congress. Those official purposes are listed as accessing a Federal facility; boarding Federally-regulated commercial aircraft; and entering nuclear power plants. However, the law states that federal agencies will no longer accept a non-compliant DL/ID after May 2008. Therefore, DHS is well within its authorized jurisdiction to expand these official purposes through future rulemakings. For example, a DHS form is now part of the process when one opens a bank account (not mentioned above). It must be assumed that DHS may, in the future, only accept a compliant ID for banking. DHS will have control over our financial lives as well as our driving and flying. Expanding official purposes may also include additional intrusive security measures DHS sees fit to employ. 

DHS QUESTION AND ANSWER

How does the NPRM protect Privacy of license holders?

Continuing to protect the privacy of license holders was a key consideration for DHS in the development of this NPRM, which contains a detailed analysis of the three key privacy issues posed by the Act: (1) the connectivity of the databases; (2) the protection of the personal information stored in the State databases; and (3) the protection of the personal information stored on machine readable technology on the DL/IDs. We invite comments on whether the steps outlined within the NPRM are appropriate and adequate.

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Who will have access to the information that the DMV will be required to collect?

As they do now, authorized DMV officials in the licensing State will have access to DMV records. DMV employees in one State cannot fish the records in another State. The proposed rule requires States to include a comprehensive security plan for safeguarding information collected, stored, or disseminated for purposes of complying with the REAL ID Act, including procedures to prevent unauthorized access, use, or dissemination of applicant information and images of source documents retained pursuant to the Act and standards and procedures for document retention and destruction.  

REAL ANSWER: Privacy and massive disclosure of personal information are hardly compatible concepts, and in this case, illegal. Linking State databases violates the Fourth Amendment that protects us from illegal searches of our houses, papers, and effects. Information given to the State, and protected by State law, will be available to ALL 50 STATES, if REAL ID goes into effect (Sec. 37.33 (b) pg. 149 NPRM). The answer above says that other states cannot fish for information. But, the NPRM states: 

States must provide to all other States electronic access to information contained in the motor vehicle database of the State, in a manner approved by DHS pursuant to this regulation. 

Information is shared through an open and linked system without accountability. Information is available without first obtaining approval from the State that collected the data. THIS DOES NOT PROTECT PRIVACY. IT FACILITATES ID THEFT.  A break-in at just ONE DMV, DPS or Tag Agent could result in total access to ALL personal-biometric information of ALL drivers in the U.S. This threat is amplified as data is shared globally. 

DHS is also proposing a national one-stop-shopping database for verifying ID documents. This will give ALL STATES instant access to ALL our personal, historical, financial and identifiable information used for ID verification when obtaining an REAL ID DL/ID (pg 26), as well as access to FEDERAL DATABASES (see pg 26 NPRM federated query service and federal reference databases). Does this mean States (and DHS) will have access to our banking information, medical information, IRS records and State Tax records? There appears to be no limit as to what information will be linked and available in the system. 

The AAMVA already provides States a portal for online SSN verification (SSOLV). Is our personal information to be verified through an international organization's website? This same AAMVA openly and publicly exposed the name, address and SSN of dozens of New Mexico residents on the AAMVA website. DHS's TSA division lost a hard drive containing personal information of thousands of employees. The AAMVA and DHS appear to be incapable of protecting their own data, much less the administration of an international database. It will be impossible to protect privacy with this system. 

Also, employees at DMV, DPS agencies and tag agents will have to become instant experts in identifying fraudulent documents, immigration issues, and document-office security measures.

Is this a National ID card?

No. The proposed regulations establish common standards for States to issue licenses. The Federal Government is not issuing the licenses, is not collecting information about license holders, and is not requiring States to transmit license holder information to the Federal Government that the Government does not already have (such as a Social Security Number). Most States already routinely collect the information required by the Act and the proposed regulations.

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Do the proposed regulations require States to collect fingerprints or iris images from drivers?

No. Though States may independently choose to implement biometrics into their driver's license process, the NPRM does not require a State to collect fingerprints, iris images, or other biometric data in connection with obtaining a license and has no plans to serve as a repository for the face images the states will collect.  

REAL ANSWER: No, it is not a National ID card, it is an INTERNATIONAL ID CARD. Card design, document scanning, signature storage, facial image capture, etc. and systems for interoperability €”for easy sharing of documents between nations and corporation, are ALL designed by international organizations to international sharing standards. These are the same standards also being adopted by most other nations for their ID.  

No fingerprints or iris scans are required BUT, FACIAL IMAGE CAPTURE (photo) IS BIOMETRIC COMPATIBLE - Facial image capture standards are based on the ICAO's Biometric data interchange formats (ref. 17 pg. 68 NPRM) ensuring that all non-biometric DL/ID photos will be compatible with international facial recognition systems. Only access to the data is needed for conversion.  

This means that a State with biometrics can access a facial image from a State without biometrics and convert the image into a facial recognition biometric image (see page 83 NPRM).

We already have enrollment into a biometric ID system. We already have international standards for biometric ID. The REAL DANGER with REAL ID is not cost, but that it opens State databases containing biometric-personal information and requires all non-biometric States to use biometric standards so their data can be converted. Database linking is the last part to establish a global system of identification and financial control. Such a system would destroy our nation's sovereignty and our constitutional way of life because the people would no longer have access to those who control such a powerful document.

Do a word search in the NPRM for AAMVA and ICAO and read the technical requirements for which these international organizations have authority.

Will a national database be created that stores information about every applicant?

No. The REAL ID Act and these regulations do not establish a national database of driver information. States will continue to collect and store information about applicants as they do today. The NPRM does not propose to change this practice and would not give the Federal government any greater access to this information.

REAL ANSWER: How is it possible for DHS to provide states with an information-clearing-house (federated query service) for the ease of State agencies if it does not have access to those databases itself? DHS officials, in biometric conferences, have made it clear they intend to share personal-biometric data globally beginning with Asia and Europe, but here we read a different response. Why? How can we trust federal agencies that have lied to us while supposedly protecting us? Once States lose control and share data, DHS has the power to take over the database since they already have control over the execution of the system and ability to set new security standards as they see fit at a later date.

Will REAL ID change how my license looks?

The proposed rule does not specify precise designs or layouts of state issued licenses. Instead, DHS is proposing minimum standards that will appear on the face of the card. The proposed regulation would require each of the following on the face of REAL IDs; space available for 39 characters for full legal name; address of principal residence; digital photograph; gender; date of birth; signature, document number; and machine readable technology. Additionally, temporary REAL IDs would need to clearly state that they are temporary. Non-REAL IDs issued by compliant States would need to clearly state on their face that they are not acceptable for Federal official purposes and use a unique design or color that clearly distinguishes them from REAL ID licenses.  

REAL ANSWER: These non-precise designs are precisely spelled out based on the AAMVA International DL/ID Card Design. Photo images are also spelled out in the ICAO biometric image collection standards. Again, we have an international DL/ID card regardless of what State name or color is on the card. The cosmetic differences between State ID cards is part of the deception, giving the impression of retained State sovereignty, when in fact States will have totally lost their sovereignty.